OVERVIEW
LONG RANGE OBJECTIVES
HOW TO SUPPORT THE MINERVA CENTER
OVERVIEW
The MINERVA Center, Inc. is an educational and research 501(c)3 corporation for the study of women in war and women and the military. The Center was established in January 1983 by Dr. Linda Grant De Pauw, at that time Professor of History at the George Washington University and now Professor Emeritus, who runs the Center as an unpaid volunteer. Since 1986 she has been assisted part-time by Debra E. Morgenstern, president of MOUSE (Morgenstern’s Own Unique Services Enterprise) who maintains the mailing list and keeps the financial records..
Since its formation in 1983, MINERVA has focused on publication. The Center publishes two periodicals: MINERVA: Quarterly Report on Women and the Military (ISSN 0736-718X) began publication in 1983 and Minerva’s Bulletin Board (ISSN 0897-6104). The former runs in-depth articles from various academic disciplines as well as inter-disciplinary analysis, first person accounts, oral histories, book and film reviews, fiction and poetry. The editorial policy emphasizes diversity. Minerva’s Bulletin Board is a news magazine focusing primarily on American servicewomen and women veterans but including news relating to women and the military from all parts of the world. Between December 1987 and October 1989, MINERVA also produced a daily radio show — “Minerva on the Air” — which was distributed through Armed Forces Radio.
The Center began publishing books in 1993 and established an electronic discussion group, originally known as MINERVA, in 1996.
The MINERVA publications are the only periodicals in the world to deal exclusively and extensively with matters relating to women and the military. They have been identified by the Pentagon Library as the major source for those doing research on such subjects. Institutional subscribers include major military libraries in the United States, Canada, Australia, Israel, China, and many European nations. Penetration of the civilian library market has been poor. Individual subscribers are primarily American servicewomen and women veterans. Penetration of this market has also been poor because of lack of visibility.
There has been virtually no formal promotion or marketing of MINERVA. Subscribers have learned of the publications primarily by word of mouth or by citations in footnotes to articles in more widely distributed periodicals and books.
LONG RANGE OBJECTIVES
The purpose of The MINERVA Center is to support women’s military studies in the widest sense. Its perspective is diverse, and its activities are educational, not political. While the information generated by the Center is useful to makers of public policy, the Center does not engage in lobbying.
The mission of the Center, to provide “information and inspiration” could be forwarded by the following activities. Some of these have already begun. For the others only the vision currently exists to be acted on when the human and financial resources become available.
- Design teaching modules to help classroom teachers integrate women into the study of past wars and current defense issues
- Design special educational projects, e.g. battlefield tours focusing on women
- Encourage integration of women’s military studies into curricula of civilian and military educational programs
- Encourage archival preservation of women’s papers
- Encourage preservation of artifacts
- Encourage preservation of women’s military music
- Encourage professional collection of oral histories
- Encourage writing and publication of autobiographies
- Maintain a specialized reference library of books, periodicals, slides, videotapes, newspaper clippings and ephemera such as newsletters of women’s veterans organizations
- Maintain a centralized listing of research in progress; support graduate students and others working on grant proposals or scholarly papers for presentation at professional meetings
- Maintain a space for informal networking by individuals working on complementary projects
- Maintain a revolving “loan fund” for resident scholars wishing to use materials at the Center
- Maintain and coordinate a speakers’ bureau
- Produce the radio show “Minerva on the Air”
- Produce other radio and TV programs and films.
- Produce specialized seminars of one to three days on such subjects as the history of women in combat, PTSD in women, or women in international terrorism and low-intensity conflict; prepare supporting workbooks and videotapes
- Produce one day seminars and educational packets for small groups wishing to learn how to do their own archival preservation collection of oral histories, or writing and publication of autobiographies
- Publish MINERVA: Quarterly Report on Women and the Military
and Minerva’s Bulletin Board - Publish specialized reports based on unclassified material
- Publish anthologies and new editions of out-of-print classics
- Publish bibliographies and finding aids to manuscript and oral history collections
- Publish translations of foreign language materials
- Publish novels, poetry, posters, prints, and postcards
- Develop the moderated internet discussion list H-MINERVA and its web site
- Create electronic publications and web pages linking existing resources on the World Wide Web and encouraging development of new ones
- Establish internet support groups and provide online mentoring for scholars and writers working on subjects relating to women in war and women and the military
The MINERVA Center is entirely dependent on sales of books and periodicals together with tax-deductible donations to support its current activities. Its ability to achieve larger goals depends on the growth of such support.
Please order from Minerva’s Bookstore and subscribe to our periodicals. Encourage libraries to purchase our materials.
We are always grateful for donations, however modest.
Those donating $100 or more may have their names listed on the Roster of Minerva Associates and Friends.
Make checks payable to The MINERVA Center, Inc. and send by snail mail to 20 Granada Road, Pasadena, MD 21122.